Notre Dame Football: 3 takeaways from close win over Navy in Week 12

3. Brandon Wimbush was hot and cold against Midshipmen defense

After struggling so badly in the loss to Miami that he was benched in favor of backup Ian Book, Brandon Wimbush returned to the field on Saturday and put in another uneven performance in victory. The quarterback went 4-of-11 in the first half, struggling with the elements.

It was almost as though a switch flipped in the second half for Wimbush. On his first throw after the intermission, the quarterback hit Kevin Stepherson for a 30-yard touchdown. He found Stepherson for another touchdown on the following drive. But Wimbush finished the game just 9-of-18 for 164 yards and the two scores.

But Wimbush doesn’t just make a difference throwing the ball. He added another 41 yards and a touchdown on the ground as he complimented a strong team rushing effort. The Midshipmen managed to sack Wimbush just once on Saturday, as he scrambled away from pressure and reeled off positive yardage.

For as bad as he looked against Miami, Wimbush didn’t completely redeem himself at home in Week 12. But he did enough to help lead the Fighting Irish offense to a victorious effort. He will probably need to play better, though, if Notre Dame is going to follow up the win over Navy with another over Stanford next weekend.